It's National "I Love Horses" Day

Today is "I Love Horses Day".

What is it that brings out our love for these magnificent animals anyway?

Is it their soft velvety noses gently touching your hand?  

Maybe it is when you are feeling blue and your horse comes over and gently rests her nose on your shoulder or gently moves her lips against your neck, providing you the magical comfort that you so needed.

Maybe it is watching the giant draft horses in their shiny harnesses pulling a beautiful rig.

Or two foals racing around the field playing with one another.

Or is it that feeling when a horse with a traumatic past finally overcomes his fear and reaches out to touch you with his nose for the first time and takes that one tentative step toward you.

Could it be the feeling of raw power beneath you as you let your horse stretch out at a gallop in an open field?

I think horses have the ability to reach us at more of a spiritual level than most other animals.  Their soft brown eyes contain a wisdom that cannot be explained.  Watching them run at liberty fills us with a sense of awe.

Horses have the ability to reach a place deep within us that not many other creatures can touch.  Perhaps that is why children with autism or people who have suffered immense trauma can relate to well to them.

For some they signify freedom, beauty and strength.  

Maybe it is their sheer size, their shiny coats.  

Whatever it is, it is undeniable.

What Does Horse Ownership Mean to You?

What does horse ownership mean to you?

For some, it is the idea of owning horses more than the actual connection with them.  Oh, they like their horses well enough, but don't spend much in the way of time building a deep, connected partnership.  They like to tell people they have horses because at least where I live, it is a pretty cool thing to be able to say that.

For others, horses are a hobby.  Riding is a sport to them.  They spend lots of time with their horse but only to ride them.  If they aren't riding, they don't go out and see them or spend any time on the ground with them.  They are usually very good riders but tend to pay others to do the day to day care and regular maintenance required to keep a horse in good shape.

Then there are people for whom horses are their passion.  These people don't have horses just to ride them, they have horses because they truly love them.  Riding is important but only part of it.  Sometimes they just come out to spend time with their horse, grooming them, doing groundwork or letting them hand graze.  

For some, horses are their livelihood and not only do they have the passion but they have a vested interest in ensuring the health, safety and wellbeing of their herd.

For some it is also a great social outlet.  Like-minded people sharing an interest and going to shows and horse related events together or even just a beautiful day riding out on the trails and sharing your training progress and victories or even sometimes your battles.

Others like to take on unwanted horses or horses who have issues, spending the time that it takes to rehabilitate them and giving them the time they need to recover from their issues whether they are physical or emotional.  Some people devote their entire lives to saving them.  I commend you for it is a very difficult road full of sadness but there is also the rewards.  

I believe myself to be a combination of a few of the above and I am sure that many of you reading this are as well.

This is not a post on right or wrong, simply an observation that I have made from my many years with horses.  

Just a Horse

This has to be one of my absolute favorite poems written on the subject of horses.  I'm not saying that everyone needs to feel this way about them, just understand that I do.

For those of you who also feel this way......Enjoy!!

A Magical Connection

What is it about the soul of a horse that leads us to a place of peace?

Whenever something is troubling me, what is the first thing that I turn to for comfort? My horses.  I don't need to speak or put on a brave face when I am with them.

They seem to sense my sorrow and they become a comforting, quiet and soothing presence.  They keep me grounded.

I can be open, authentic and present in their company.

I feel such strength in my connection with them and it is only getting stronger with time. This is why I am planning my business around them.  They are the medium by which I want to convey a very important message.  They don't care if you are the CEO of a Fortune 500 company.  All they care about is who you are being when you are in their presence.  We are all equal in their eyes.

I have started interacting with them in a very different way lately and to my surprise, their reaction is so incredible.  

I will go out and spend time with them out in the pasture, sitting quietly in the grass, observing them as they act like horses.  I don't force my presence upon them--I am only there as an observer.

What I have noticed is the second that I am down low and vulnerable with them, they are very interested in being in my presence.  I am not at all threatening in this pose.  They could stomp me to death if they wished.  

They are very curious creatures so when there is something different they come to see what I am doing, thoroughly giving me the once over. Some of them choose to place their head at my level and gently rest it against me. Others nibble at my clothing and hair. Some of them will graze in a circle around me, even going so far as to eat right up against, my feet, legs or back.  One other peculiar thing they will do is they will rest up against me, their legs touching my body.

I don't ever recommend that anyone try this.  I have over 40 years experience with horse and I am fully aware of the dangers of what I am doing, plus I have worked with this herd for 10 years and have raised a few of them from birth.  I only sit on the ground if there is one horse near as when others show up, they tend to fight and that is when a person can get hurt very badly.   I have the scars to prove it.  

The horses seem to sense my calmness and peaceful demeanour of late and are responding to me in beautiful ways.

Cleo, my special mare, who loves her food will stop eating every so often and turn just to gently press her velvety nose against me and give me a soft and gentle look.  

Jacob saw me in the pasture yesterday and trotted across the field to be with me.  I had trouble catching him a year ago and now he just wants to spend some time around me. What an amazing difference.  It is something indescribable when a horse gives you their trust.

I am not certain that I can fully begin to express what this connection is like.  I can only say that it borders on the spiritual as they are subtle, non-verbal communicators who can read the slightest signals from our body language.  When you can begin to listen, really listen to them, and by that I mean read their subtle body cues, then the magic begins.

The Human Equine Bond

I went away on vacation for the first time in about 2 years.  When I returned home one of the first things I did was visit the horses.  

People say that horses don't have feelings--that they don't care about their humans. 

I have never bought in to that argument.  Yes, they are somewhat food driven creatures but then so are dogs.

I decided to sit in the grass, turning three of them loose where they could graze and I could just enjoy some quiet time with them. Cleo and I are very bonded as I have known her since birth and I was the person who helped her recover from her broken neck.  It was interesting to see that even though I had just put her on green grass, instead of venturing off and eating like crazy she grazed in a 6-foot circle around me, occasionally coming in close and touching me with her face and legs. 

Even little Story would come in and touch me for a moment and then venture away.

It warmed my heart to know that they were happy to be in my company.

On the weekend, I brought my beautiful gelding Sonny to a Western Dressage Clinic.  He would get anxious and look for me every time I went out of his sight.  If I walked away, he would follow me with his eyes.  Two people that I had never met before commented that he was noticeably calmer when I was near.  What a feeling to know that my horses trust me and consider me their safety.

Last night, I wanted to sit and enjoy some peace with the broodmares and observe a mare who is ready to foal.  I sat down in a huge pile of hay.  As soon as I sat down, one foal laid down to my left and the other little guy who is usually standoffish laid down to my right.  He even allowed me to massage his legs as he closed his eyes and had a nap.  His dam came over and started eating hay right up against my back, leaning her face against me almost the whole time.  It was such a peaceful and beautiful moment. It was even more special because at one time, the broodmares were extremely skittish and wanted very little to do with humans.  I spent countless hours working with them to get to this point and to see them actually seeking out my company, well, it has made everything so much more worthwhile. It is also interesting that they only choose to do this when I am on my own with them.  It is likely that I put out different energy when I am around people.

There is nothing that grounds me as much as these magical moments.  To gain the trust of such magnificent creatures is an honour and a blessing.

I Fell In Love The Other Day...

Something wonderful happened on this past Sunday.  I gave my heart to someone...

She is just over 14HH, a petite and smart little tri-colour grulla paint named Story.  She joined my horse family as a 2 year old in May of 2012...a project horse.

Friends bid against the meat buyer at the auction to bring this little one home.  She had been in their radar at a previous auction but went to another home that time.

She was brought back to the auction a few months later and this time they decided to bid on her especially in light of who they were bidding against.  She seemed quiet and easy to handle and so would be an easy project...or maybe not.

A few days after they brought her home, she decided that being caught was no longer an option. Due to circumstances, they were unable to keep her and put her up for sale with a very honest and well worded ad. My girlfriend saw the ad on Kijiji and forwarded it to me with a note saying, "This is a perfect project for you."  Oh boy!

I needed another horse like I needed another hole in my head but she was a pretty little thing and the whole challenge of getting through to her appealed to my persistent and stubborn nature. So I sent an email to the seller and received a response from the new owner, who it turns out was a wonderful lady that I knew.  She had a number of people interested in her so she said if none of the prospects panned out she would let me know.  

Well, it turns out that fate decided that she was supposed to come into my world, so with a couple of partners, we bought her and she was delivered to us.  For the first day or so, she was quiet and nice to handle and then she decided that she wanted absolutely nothing to do with any of us.

Almost two months passed and I had absolutely no success.  She was shut down.  She wasn't interested in people or other horses.  I realized that the poor little one had been shuffled around so many times in her short life that she didn't want to bond to anyone because in her experience thus far she would be separated from them anyhow.  I had a standardbred with similar issues and she ended up being one of the best horses that I have ever owned but it took lots of time and patience.

I knew she wasn't abused and somebody had actually done some great ground work with her so she was a bit different than anyone that I had ever dealt with before.  I realized that she was going to need lots and lots of time to build trust.  I spent hours and hours in her pen hanging out and talking to her, making her feet move and still she wouldn't turn and face me no matter what I did.  She turned her rump to me and acted like she wanted to jump out of the pen.  Never once did she kick out at me or even try to.  

In a torrential rainstorm, I put her hay in her shelter and stood inside hoping her hunger would be stronger than her aversion to me. Wrong!  She absolutely refused to come in to eat.  I spent hours out there, soaked to the skin and covered in manure, hoping just hoping that she would finally cave in but she didn't.  I finally gave up and went in for the evening, discouraged and frustrated but not ready to give up on her.  

Two days after that episode, one of the boarders at the barn phoned me to say that she was sick and throwing herself down in the mud and rolling repeatedly.  My gut was doing flip flops - it sounded like colic to me so I started phoning vets.  I was in down town Calgary and couldn't get there quickly so relied on the help of my daughter and some fantastic friends who really stepped up and banded together to help her.  A vet came out and tried the standard tubing and mineral oil treatment and she wasn't responding, so another friend trailered her to a nearby vet clinic.  

At first assessment they felt that she would be a surgical case to the tune of $5-25,000.  I told them surgery was not an option and that we would be letting her go if that was the case. I am not a believer in colic surgery as I haven't heard of many success stories. It seemed like such a tragic waste to lose this little horse.  It just didn't seem right.  Her life was just beginning and why did she come to us if she was just going to pack it in?  I told them to try tubing her and medicating her again and do everything they could in that respect.

I rushed to the clinic to see her and when I got there, she was calmly walking around in the stall looking all bright and happy.  The staff were working on cleaning some of the mud off of her and they told me when she came in, they didn't realize that she was a paint. Even the insides of her ears were full of mud.  Needless to say, she stayed overnight at the clinic and we picked her up and brought her home the next day.  

I spent 4 hours cleaning her up and kept her in the barn for about a week.  I spent lots of time  doing groundwork and grooming her and realized that she was probably the smartest and most sensitive horse that I have ever owned.

In the following days the challenges continued.  Although I could catch her quite easily, she would turn tail and run, dragging me along behind her.  I had to put two lead ropes on her and my friends kindly assisted me in bringing her in so she couldn't drag me around.  It took lots of time and patience but I knew where she was coming from.  Eventually she settled down and became a nice, compliant little horse.

The following year I didn't do a whole lot with her as I decided that I wasn't going to start her myself and because she was so small I wanted her to have some time to just hang out with the herd and grow. I wanted her to go to a trainer who could recognize and bring out the potential that I knew was in her.  She would still play the catching game with me at times but would eventually give in.  The lightest of signals on the ground such as the flick of a finger could get her to change direction.  She would stand and face me, eyes wide and ears going back and forth so much that I began to call her "Radar".  

I found a fantastic horse trainer who had been successful in starting some very difficult rescue horses that I knew and I felt that he would be perfect for Story.  

We sent her off as a long three year old and he put approximately 12 rides on her.  I was worried about how sending her away was going to affect her trust issues.  I went and rode with him after she had been with him for around a month and was amazed to see my little horse loping out in the open, calm as could be under saddle.   He told me he had only put about 12 rides on her at that point and I was so pleased to see her progress. 

She had developed some nasty cinch sores so the trainer suggested that I take her home to heal and bring her back in a few months to resume her training.  When I went to visit her, I noticed that she didn't want anything to do with me.  I loaded her in the trailer and brought her home, tied her up in the barn and said, "See, I told you I wasn't going to abandon you."

I groomed her and treated her wounds and then played with her in the indoor arena.  Next thing I knew, she came up behind me and was gently touching my shoulder with her lips. That was absolutely the first time she had ever made any sort of affectionate move toward me.  I was thrilled but still somehow held back a part of my heart from her.

We sent her back to finish her training and she was gone for February and March.  Because of the bitterly cold weather, I didn't go and see her until it was time to pick her up.  I went out there and again, she was completely standoffish with me for which I felt bad as I knew I had left her for a long time.  The trainer handed her reins to me and I started talking to her.  She finally stretched her nose out to touch my hand and greeted me.  I think she realized that I wasn't abandoning her.  I rode her and wow!  She is light, soft, and oh so catty!  She has tremendous potential and I am absolutely thrilled with the job he did with her.

He brought her home two days later and I have been riding her almost every day.  She is an amazing little horse!

For the first time since we bought her, she whinnies when she sees me.  When I do ground work with her, she does this funny little crab walk to position herself behind my right shoulder and gently touches me with her lips.  I don't normally let horses get this much in my space but she is not being pushy and it is like she is looking to me for reassurance.

She has finally given me her heart and I have given her mine.  I adore this little horse and all of those hours spent trying to gain her trust have been more than worth it.  She just needed time and someone to believe in her.  

Everybody deserves to have someone who loves and believes in them.  Someone who won't write them off.

Respecting Your Horse

Just like people, horses are different from one another.  They have different ways of learning and they are physically and mentally suited to different disciplines.  Just because you think your horse is a western pleasure prospect doesn't mean that he is.  He may have that nice slow jog down pat but when it comes right down to it, he wants to do cattle work.

It's funny how we try to mould our horses to do things that they are not meant to do.  I did that once with disastrous results.  As a result of my actions it took over a year to pull things back together with that particular horse.  

His name is Jacob and there was doubt as to whether I was going to keep him.  I wanted him to do some low level western shows.  I was nervous and so was he.  He fed off of my mood and managed to buck me off for the first time in his life at the show grounds.  He wanted nothing to do with me and wanted to get as far away as possible.  Only I didn't see it that way.  I was upset with him and just felt he was being a jerk.  

It really unnerved me as at one point I had absolutely no control over him and we almost had a crazy wreck.  A friend of mine finally got on his back and he was just fine for her. He was completely feeding off of my mood.

The problem continued.  He wanted absolutely nothing to do with me and I could no longer catch him out in the pasture.  Shortly after the show he injured his shoulder and wasn't sound for about a year.  I believe it to be a blessing because I just had to spend time rehabbing him.  I couldn't sell him because he wasn't sound and we just had to work it all out.

I realized that he was a horse with a higher head carriage, and is fairly high strung.  He likes speed.  I was trying so hard to make him into something that he wasn't in order to satisfy my requirements and didn't even give him a minute's consideration.

I started riding him again but with a whole different attitude.  I tried him on some gymkhana patterns in our own arena and joined the local riding club.

On a whim, I decided to bring Jacob to a gymkhana just for exposure and wasn't even sure if I was going to ride him.  We got there and he was incredibly calm so I decided to pay the entry fee and see where it went.  He was fantastic!  I found his niche.

He gets all excited and happy when I run barrels or poles.  He isn't a superstar, but he is a happy horse.  He wants to be brought in now and our relationship is the best it's ever been.  

A hard lesson but a very important one.